Drum body having integral mounting lugs for drumhead tensioning apparatus

ABSTRACT

A drum body comprising a hollow shell member and a plurality of protuberant lugs forming mounting lugs for drumhead tensioning apparatus. The lugs and member are joined as an integral unit.

United States Patent Phillips et al.

[ 51 July4,1972

[54] DRUM BODY HAVING INTEGRAL MOUNTING LUGS FOR DRUMHEAD TENSIONINGAPPARATUS [72] Inventors: Kenneth W. Phillips; Iris L. Phillips, both of2050 Perkins Drive, Springfield, Ohio [22] Filed: Dec. 8, 1970 [21]App1.No.: 96,154

[52] U.S.Cl..... ..84/411,84/452 P [51] lnt. Cl. ..G10d 13/02 [58] FieldofSearch ..84/411,419,420,452 P [56] References Cited UNlTED STATESPATENTS 2,074,193 3/1937 Strupe ..84/411 2,172,578 9/1939 Gladstone..84/41l 2,834,244 5/1958 Willits ....84/411 3,139,783 7/1964 Grant etal.. ..84/411 3,019,685 2/1962 Davis ...84/411 3,459,093 8/1969 NiShiuraet a1 ...84/41 1 1,609,940 12/1926 Geisler ...84/411 3,362,275 1/1968Koishikawa ..84/411 Primary ExaminerRichard B. Wilkinson AssistantExaminer]ohn F. Gonzales Attorney-Birch, Swindler, McKie & Beckett [57]ABSTRACT A drum body comprising a hollow shell member and a plurality ofprotuberant lugs forming mounting lugs for drumhead tensioningapparatus. The lugs and member are joined as an integral unit.

8 Claims, 3 Drawing Figures PATENTEDJUL" 4 I972 INVENTORS KENNETH W.PHILLIPS IRIS L. PHILLIPS BY 4M Aw/iw ATTORNEYS BACKGROUND OF THEINVENTION 1. Field of the Invention This invention relates to drumbodies, and specifically to a drum body having integral mounting lugsfor drumhead tensioning apparatus.

2. Description of the Prior Art Mounting lugs for drumhead tensioningapparatus usually comprise individual elements which are attached to thebody of the associated drum by means of bolts or like fasteners.Mounting lugs of this type are shown, for example, in Wanamaker U.S.Pat. No. 1,269,984 and White U.S. Pat. No. 3,163,076. Such lugs tend towork loose from the drum body after continued use resulting in improperdrumhead tensioning. Additionally, such lugs have numerous sharp pointsand edges which extend outwardly from the drum body and upon which auser may injure himself or tear his clothing.

Mounting lugs having fewer sharp points and edges than the conventionallugs described above are shown in Willits U.S. Pat. No. 2,834,244 andKoishikawa U.S. Pat. No. 3,405,586. However, these latter types of lugsstill tend to work loose from the associated drum body after continueduse.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION With the foregoing in mind, it is an object ofthe present invention to provide an improved drum body having integralmounting lugs for drumhead tensioning apparatus.

It is a further object of the invention to provide a drum body havingmounting lugs for drumhead tensioning apparatus, which lugs will notwork loose from the body after continued use.

It is also an object of the invention to provide a drum body havingmounting lugs for drumhead tensioning apparatus, which lugs have smoothexterior surfaces that blend smoothly with the exterior surface of thebody.

It is an additional object of the invention to provide a drum bodyhaving integral mounting lugs for drumhead tensioning apparatus, whichbody is durable and economical to manufacture.

These and other objects of the invention will become apparent upon aconsideration of the following general and detailed descriptionsthereof.

Generally described, the drum body of the invention comprises; a hollowshell member defining a chamber therein and having at least one openingtherein adapted to be covered by a drumhead; and a plurality ofprotuberant lugs extending outwardly from the member forming mountinglugs for apparatus to tension the drumhead over said opening, each ofthe lugs having at least one peripheral edge contiguous with the member,and all of the peripheral lug edges contiguous with the member beingintegrally joined to the member so that the member and lugs form anintegral unit.

Each of the lugs has a smooth exterior surface which blends smoothlywith the exterior surface of the shell member. Preferably, the lugs aresemi-bullet shaped each having a flat end oriented toward the opening inthe shell member adapted to be covered by the drumhead and a pointed endoriented away from such opening. Also preferably, the lugs are equallyspaced apart about the shell member and are equidistant from the openingtherein.

The shell member and lugs preferably are made from a moldable plasticmaterial, such as a glass-filled epoxy resin. The lugs may be formedwith the shell member, as by molding, or may be formed separately andthen joined to the member to form an integral unit.

A preferred embodiment of the invention will now be described in detailin conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein like referencenumerals identify like elements throughout.

2 BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a partial perspective viewof a drum which includes the drum body of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of one of the integral mounting lugs of thedrum body of the invention; and

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken on line 33 of FIG. 1.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT A drum 10 is shown in FIG. 1,including a drum body 12 which embodies the principles of the presentinvention. Body 12 includes a hollow shell member 14 which may begenerally cylindrically shaped and which defines a chamber therein.Member 14 has at least one opening therein which is covered by aconventional drumhead 16. A conventional tensioning ring 18 is disposedabout drumhead 16 for tensioning the drumhead over the opening in member14.

To tension drumhead 16, ring 18 must be drawn downwardly, as seen inFIG. 1, about member 14 to stretch the drumhead over the opening in themember. A plurality of drumhead tensioning apparatus, comprisingturnbuckle assemblies 20, are attached to ring 18 for drawing the ringdownwardly about member 14. Each turnbuckle assembly 20 buckle link 26threadably engaging shafts 22 and 24.

Each lower shaft 24 is anchored to member 14 by a protuberant mountinglug 28 extending outwardly from the member. Lugs 28 are semi-bulletshaped each having a flat end 30 oriented toward the opening in member14 and a pointed end 32 oriented away from such opening.

Lugs 28 include peripheral edges 34, 36 and 38 which are contiguous withmember 14 and are joined to the member along the length thereof so thatthe lugs and member form an integral unit. The lugs and shell memberpreferably are made from a moldable plastic material, such as aglass-filled epoxy resin, and may be formed as an integral unit, as bymolding. Alternatively, the lugs may be formed separately and thenjoined to member 14 along peripheral edges 34, 36 and 38 to form anintegral unit.

Lugs 28 are hollow, and shell member 14 has a plurality of openingstherein corresponding in number to the number of lugs and eachcorresponding in size and shape to the outline defined by peripheraledges 34,36 and 38. Lugs 28 are positioned over such openings. Thevolume of the chamber defined by member 14 is thus enlarged by theinternal volume of lugs 28.

Lugs 28 preferably are equally spaced apart around member 14 and areequidistant from the opening therein covered by drumhead 16. Each lowershaft 24 extends upwardly through the flat end 30 of the associated lug28, and has a head 40 which engages the inner surface of such end. Ifdesired, head 40 may be secured to the inner surface of end 30 by asuitable adhesive to prevent shaft 24 from falling out of end 30 duringassembly of drum l0 and periodic replacement of drumhead 16.

As is apparent from the foregoing description, lugs 28 have smoothexterior surfaces which blend smoothly with the exterior surface ofmember 14. Thus, the hazardous sharp points and edges which characterizethe prior art mounting lugs are eliminated.

Also, lugs 28 are joined to shell member 14 along all of the peripheraledges of the lugs which are contiguous with the member to form anintegral unit. This feature insures that the lugs will not work looseafter continued use nor upon being struck inadvertently by externalobjects.

While the foregoing constitutes a detailed description of a preferredembodiment of the drum body of the invention, it is recognized thatvarious modifications thereof will occur to those skilled in the art.For example, the mounting lugs may have other than a semi-bullet shapeand may be adapted to anchor other than turnbuckle assembly tensioningapparatus. Therefore, the scope of the invention is to be limited solelyby the scope of the appended claims.

We claim:

1. A drum body comprising:

a hollow shell member defining a chamber therein and having at least onefirst opening therein adapted to be covered by a drumhead; and

a plurality of hollow protuberant lugs extending outwardly from saidmember forming mounting lugs for apparatus to tension said drumhead oversaid first opening, each of said lugs having at least one peripheraledge contiguous with said member, all of said peripheral lug edgescontiguous with said member being integrally joined to the member sothat the member and lugs form an integral unit, and said member having aplurality of second openings therein corresponding in number to thenumber of said lugs, each of said second openings having substantiallythe same size and shape as the outline defined by said peripheral edgeso that the volume of the chamber is enlarged by the internal volume ofthe lugs.

2. A drum body as recited in claim 1, wherein each of said lugs has asmooth exterior surface blending smoothly with the exterior surface ofsaid member. I

3. A drum body as recited in claim 2, wherein the end of each of saidlugs nearest said opening is substantially flat and adapted to engageone end of said tensioning apparatus.

4. A drum body as recited in claim 3, wherein said lugs aresubstantially semi-bullet shaped.

5. A drum body as recited in claim 1, wherein said lugs are spaced apartabout said member and are substantially equidistant from said opening.

6. A drum body as recited in claim 5, wherein said lugs aresubstantially equally spaced apart about said member.-

7. A drum body as recited in claim 1, wherein said member and lugs aremade from a moldable plastic material.

8. A drum body as recited in claim 7, wherein said member and lugs aremade from a glass-filled epoxy resin.

1. A drum body comprising: a hollow shell member defining a chambertherein and having at least one first opening therein adapted to becovered by a drumhead; and a plurality of hollow protuberant lugsextending outwardly from said member forming mounting lugs for apparatusto tension said drumhead over said first opening, each of said lugshaving at least one peripheral edge contiguous with said member, all ofsaid peripheral lug edges contiguous with said member being integrallyjoined to the member so that the member and lugs form an integral unit,and said member having a plurality of second openings thereincorresponding in number to the number of said lugs, each of said secondopenings having substantially the same size and shape as the outlinedefined by said peripheral edge so that the volume of the chamber isenlarged by the internal volume of the lugs.
 2. A drum body as recitedin claim 1, wherein each of said lugs has a smooth exterior surfaceblending smoothly with the exterior surface of said member.
 3. A drumbody as recited in claim 2, wherein the end of each of said lugs nearestsaid opening is substantially flat and adapted to engage one end of saidtensioning apparatus.
 4. A drum body as recited in claim 3, wherein saidlugs are substantially semi-bullet shaped.
 5. A drum body as recited inclaim 1, wherein said lugs are spaced apart about said member and aresubstantially equidistant from said opening.
 6. A drum body as recitedin claim 5, wherein said lugs are substantially equally spaced apartabout said member.
 7. A drum body as recited in claim 1, wherein saidmember and lugs are made from a moldable plastic material.
 8. A drumbody as recited in claim 7, wherein said member and lugs are made from aglass-filled epoxy resin.